Ryanair Holdings has reported a €306m loss in Q3 when compared to previous year’s Q3 profit. Its Q3 traffic fell from 36 million to eight million, resulting in a -78 per cent reduction.

The airline says its Christmas & New Year traffic was severely impacted by UK travel bans imposed at short notice by many EU governments on 19 and 20 December.

The carrier expects the latest lockdowns and pre-arrival Covid test requirement to materially reduce its flight schedules and traffic through to Easter. The group’s full-year traffic forecast has been reduced to between 26 million to 30 million passengers.

Ancillary revenue

According to the airline, its ancillary revenue delivered a solid performance with more passengers choosing priority boarding and reserved seating. Q3 cost performance for the carrier was robust, falling 63 per cent as a result of measures implemented over the past nine months.

Ryanair says 2021 will be the most challenging year in the carrier’s 35-year history. However, the airline expects to have a much lower cost base and a strong balance sheet, enabling it to fund lower fares and add lower-cost aircraft to capitalise on growth opportunities.

“We will work assiduously with our airport and government partners to restore routes and recover traffic for the benefit of our airports, our customers and our people as we try to prioritise the jobs and salary recovery of our people,” the carrier stated.